THE EGYPTIAN SUDAN in a difficult position. The natives, moreover, had discovered quickly what manner of men their new rulers were, and they plucked up courage, and began to give the authorities information which sometimes turned out to be of value. The day I returned to Atbara Fort a Berber slave agent was arrested in the desert some miles from the river, with a number of slaves in his possession, and he was promptly brought in to -Atbara and examined by Captain Swabey. The agent's statements were soon found to be false, and as the charge of kidnapping was clearly proved against him and his assistant, they were put under restraint until the punishment to be meted out to them was decided upon. Captain Swabey then had the party of slaves brought in before him, and asked them questions, and found that they had been greatly illused ; the party consisted of an old man, three elderly women, and a boy. Having satisfied himself on all points connected with their capture. Captain Swabey then declared each one of them to be free, but they seemed dazed and hardly to understand that they had been set free. At that moment freedom did not mean much to them, for they were hungry and penniless, and far from their homes. They were, however, helped out of their difficulties, for Captain Swabey took steps to have them fed, and by his wish one of the Egyptian officers found them shelter, and made arrangements whereby they received rations. The party left the Commandant's office in a most dejected state, and I believe they would even then have welcomed a life of slavery with any one who would have taken the responsibility of providing them with food and drink and enough cotton stuff to cover them.

A day later a train was made up for the north, and in company with Captain Oldfield and Captain (now Colonel) Henry I returned to Haifa in about two days. We occupied one of the new saloon coaches, wherein provision was made for sleeping and cooking, and I have often travelled with much less comfort on an English railway. We frequently attained to a speed of twentyfive miles an hour, and if the protracted delays at some stations, caused by an insufficiency of locomotives, be not taken into consideration, no one had any cause for complaint. At Haifa I was met by Mr. Somers Clarke, who showed me great kindness and welcomed me on his dhahabiya. The following morning we 282 I